Prof. Suzanne Higgs | The role of cognitive functions in uncontrolled eating and obesity

Gastvortrag

  • Datum: 13.03.2023
  • Uhrzeit: 15:30 - 16:30
  • Vortragende(r): Prof. Suzanne Higgs
  • School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, UK
  • Ort: MPI für Kognitions- und Neurowissenschaften
  • Raum: Wilhelm Wundt Room (A400) + Zoom Meeting (hybrid mode)
  • Gastgeber: Abteilung Neurologie
Cognition underpins the control of human eating and disruption to higher cognitive processes results in uncontrolled food intake, which in the long term could result in weight gain and the development of obesity. Evidence from meta-analyses suggests that cognitive function is cross-sectionally associated with obesity even when controlling for a range of confounding variables. However, reverse causality is also likely because there is evidence that obesity/metabolic syndrome and a history of excess western diet consumption alters brain structure and cognitive function. To further investigate the potential role of cognitive functions in the development of obesity we have begun to investigate the mechanisms that underpin the relationship between Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and uncontrolled eating. We find that both inattentive and hyperactive/impulsive symptoms are associated with uncontrolled eating but there are distinct underlying pathways. Negative mood appears to play a mediating role for both symptom sub-types but interoceptive accuracy is a specific mediator of the association between inattentive symptoms and uncontrolled eating. We have further found that lisdexamfetamine (a stimulant that is used in the treatment of both ADHD and binge eating) improves attention and inhibitory control in women with binge eating symptoms as well as reducing food intake and enhancing satiety. Taken together, these data suggest that chronic disruption to attentional and inhibitory control is associated with uncontrolled eating which could explain the association between ADHD and obesity and may underpin the development of obesity more generally.

Suzanne Higgs has a degree in Psychology, Philosophy and Physiology from The University of Oxford and a PhD in Psychology from Durham University. She worked as a post-doctoral researcher at The University of Oxford before moving to the University of Birmingham to take up a faculty position where she is currently is a Professor in the Psychobiology of Appetite in the School of Psychology. Her research focuses on the psychology of eating and the biological mechanisms that underpin the decisions about what and how much we eat. She is interested in the cognitive processes involved in appetite and how social context influences food choice and food intake. She was Editor in Chief of the journal Appetite from 2011-2022 and is Past President of the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior.
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